One of the frequent questions that we are asked at Stewardship is about trustees in churches, and how that role interacts with those of the spiritual leaders, like ministers, pastors and elders. This issue can create confusion and even, at times, tensions between people. As a result, it is an important issue for those involved in church leadership to understand.
The confusion and tension come out of what the church is. It is not only a community of Christians working together to evangelise, love and disciple – principally governed by the teaching in the Bible – but also, very often, a charity governed by UK law. The Charity Commission has guidance for trustees and the Bible has principles for good leadership. These need to work together if the church is to be well governed in both aspects.
It is important in each church setting to work out how these leadership principles are best achieved. This will depend on the type of structure a church has, and who the individuals are in the team. We find that when these are understood and there are good relationships between the people on the team, the different roles work well to support each other and achieve good spiritual direction and good legal governance. Where there is misunderstanding or poor relationships (and one tends to lead to the other), there can be gaps or frictions leading to problems in either or both of the spiritual and legal leadership of the church.
If you want to read more on this subject, please refer to our free briefing papers entitled 'What is the best leadership structure for my church?' and ‘Guide to churches on spiritual leaders and trustees’. If you think your own church could improve in this area, we recommend you humbly ask God for help, seek to understand the others in your team and work to see this resolved in line with the teaching of Ephesians chapter 4. If you would like to speak to one of Stewardship’s Consultants, who have practical experience of being involved in both spiritual leadership and trustee roles, we would encourage you to subscribe to Stewardship’s Consultancy Helpline.
Other blogs in this series
Stephen Mathews
Stephen has been at Stewardship for over 20 years, advising churches and Christian charities on a breadth of issues around money, culture and governance. Previous to that, he gained valuable experience working for 20 years in the accountancy profession, alongside church leadership in his spare time.
Stephen is passionate about Local Church, UK Poverty & Debt, and International Aid, with a particular focus on educational development in Africa and in youth violence and racial inequality.
